Christina

Where the name comes from

• Greek and Latin, via the Germanic vernaculars
  “Christian”; a (female) follower of Christ
  Ultimately Greek Χριστιανός (Christianós) ‘a Christian, a follower of Christ’, from Χριστός ‘Christ’, borrowed into Church Latin as christianus. DMNES derives the medieval name from Old English christen / Old High German kristān ‘Christian’.
  Same root as the masculine Christian, which is already in the database. Sources nevertheless treat Christina as a name in its own right: DMNES has separate entries for Christina and Christiana (“often confused with Christiana, of related origin”), and Yonge’s glossary lists Christina, Christiana and Christine as separate headwords. Wiktionary (no source cited) calls it a shortening of Latin Christiana; DMNES gives a vernacular Germanic route. Both routes give the meaning “Christian”. The word “Christian” itself is first recorded at Antioch (Acts 11:26).

Christina across traditions

• Christian (early and medieval church). Borne by “many early medieval saints” (DMNES). According to Thayer, the label Christian was first given to Jesus’s followers by outsiders and was accepted as a title of honor from the second century on. The name is attested in Latin records from Germany (822–875) and France (about 823) (DMNES).
• Scandinavian and Northern European. DMNES calls it “the name of many medieval Swedish queens and queen consorts”. Northern forms in its records include Cristin (Sweden, 1383), Kristina (Germany, 1294), Kerstyn (Middle Low German, 1523) and Kirstine (Denmark, 1581). Queen Christina of Sweden (reigned 1644–54) is its most famous royal bearer.
• Southern and Western European. Cristina appears in England from 1189 and in the Czech lands from 1349 (DMNES). Yonge lists the French Christine, the Portuguese Christinha and the Norse Christiane, all meaning “Christian” (Yonge, p. 105).
• United States (SSA). Combined births in the seven SSA decade tables: 567,100 girls (Christina 446,224; Kristina 105,841; Cristina 15,035). Peak decade: 1980s, with Christina #18 (146,008), Kristina #60 (45,947) and Cristina #185 (15,035), together 206,990. Christina alone: #175 (1950s), #72 (1960s), #16 (1970s), #18 (1980s), #40 (1990s), #125 (2000s); not in the 2010s top 200.

Who carried it

• Christina, queen of Sweden (December 8, 1626 – April 19, 1689; reigned 1644–54): Abdicated her throne, which stunned Europe, after a secret conversion to Roman Catholicism; died in Rome.

Forms in other languages

Cristina, Kristina, Christiana, Christinha, Cristin, Kerstyn, Kirstine

Christina in letter-number systems

Hebrew, Greek and other traditions gave every letter a number, and read meaning into the totals. These are the counts, computed; the readings are inside the Innerverse.